


Basis for Comparison

by purewanderlust



Category: Labyrinth (1986)
Genre: Angst, Enemies to Lovers, F/M, Romance, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-16
Updated: 2016-10-03
Packaged: 2018-05-14 08:33:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 9
Words: 12,642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5736805
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/purewanderlust/pseuds/purewanderlust
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the year after beating the Labyrinth, Sarah finds herself spiraling deeper and deeper into a depression. After she starts seeing things that aren't there, her parents send her to spend some time at a group mental facility. That's hardly fair! But then again, who says life is fair?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Alright folks, buckle up because this is going to be an interesting ride for all of us.
> 
> I wrote the first fifteen chapters of this fic over at FF.net way back in '07. This past week, I've had a lot of renewed interest after David Bowie's passing, so I decided to touch up the chapters I already have and then finish the story. We'll see how it goes.
> 
> Obviously, this story is in remembrance of David Bowie, who inspired me to write, act, sing, and a lot else besides. Thanks, Starman.

The first time her stepmother caught her talking to herself, Sarah resolved to never let it happen again. Of course, she hadn’t  _ actually _ been talking to herself, but Irene couldn’t see the dwarf perched on the foot of her bed, legs swinging. 

“Oh, I was just talking to myself,” she said airily. “I have this thing coming up for debate class and I was working on my argument.” 

Irene nodded, but there was something off about her smile--it didn’t reach her eyes. “Sorry for disturbing you,” her stepmother said, stepping back out into the hallway and pulling the door shut behind her. Sarah waited until the sound of her footsteps faded away before turning back to Hoggle.

“Oh, man, that could’ve gone badly.”

It would later, of course, but Sarah had no way of knowing that at the time.

She should’ve paid closer attention to how quickly Irene accepted her lie, maybe then she would have realized how much more closely she was being watched.

A week later, she was in the kitchen in the dead of night, sneaking snacks for her friends. She was trying to be quiet, opening and closing cabinets with care, but just as she was getting ready to turn and head back to her room, the overhead light flicked on.

Sarah turned around and came face-to-face with Irene, wrapped up in her pink bathrobe, still looking muzzy and half-asleep. Her elegant face scrunched up in confusion. “Sarah, what on earth are you doing, it’s two in the morning!”

“Just wanted a little midnight snack,” Sarah lied, “I’m sorry I woke you.”

Irene stared at her for a moment. “That’s an awful lot of food for one person.”  
  
It was. Six oranges, a jar of peanut butter, and an entire loaf of bread. Sarah tried to shrug and stopped quickly when her haul shifted in her arms.

“Yeah, I’m really hungry.”

She took advantage of Irene's half-conscious state and slipped past her through the kitchen door. “G’night!” she called behind her as she bolted up the stairs. 

In the end, fear that her stepmother would overhear them made Sarah feel like she had to eat her oranges with Didymus, Ludo, and Hoggle in complete silence, so it felt like a kind of hollow victory.

Still, even then, everything had been fine. Irene had always looked at her like she was a little crazy, and they were actually starting to get along in spite of that. Hoggle and Didymus and Ludo visited her all the time. Toby was starting to talk and he absolutely adored his sister. Sarah was happy. 

But after a while, she started to feel like she was missing something. Sure, as long as she had a mirror, she could call her friends to her side, but it seemed like there was something important that she had left behind. Fantasy and fiction had always spoken to Sarah more strongly than real life, and now that she’d gotten a taste of genuine magic, normal life was too mundane. She wanted to go back to the Labyrinth-to the other world, and she called her friends more often and was less careful.

“Is everythin’ okay, Sarah?” Hoggle asked on one of these visits. She looked up at him, surprised.

“What do you mean?”

“Ya just seem awful down lately. What’s goin’ on?”

“Nothing,” Sarah said immediately. She turned to her vanity and started flipping absently through one of the playbills there, just for something to do. Hoggle made an impatient noise and kicked his feet against the footboard of her bed.

“Alrigh’, if you say so. How’s school?” Sarah wasn’t sure that the dwarf actually had any understanding of how the human education system worked, but that didn’t stop Hoggle from trying to show interest in her life, bless him.

“It’s fine,” she said, one shoulder slipping up in an approximation of a shrug. “There’s a play next semester; I was thinking about trying out.”

“What kinda play?” Hoggle said, back on even footing. Sarah knew that the Fae loved the arts, especially stories and music.  _ They’re probably much better than any production on this side _ , she thought, all at once desperately sad.

“Doesn’t matter. I probably won’t go out for it anyway.” 

“Sarah, are you on the phone…?” her father appeared in the doorway suddenly. His eyes scanned the room, sliding right over Hoggle like he wasn’t even there. “Honey, who are you talking to?”

“No one!” Sarah snapped. 

Robert’s eyebrows shot up. “Sarah, I’ve been standing on the other side of this door for a few minutes. You were having a whole one-sided conversation.”

Sarah jumped to her feet. “Oh, so I guess privacy is not allowed in this house?” She knew she was being overdramatic, but the idea of her father just standing outside her bedroom door, listening in on her conversations felt like such an invasion. “I mean, generally you leave someone alone if they close a door, right?"

“Sarah, don’t be like that. I was just walking by and I heard you talking. But there’s no one else here, I’m just worried…”

Sarah dropped back into her chair, suddenly exhausted. “Just leave me alone, okay?”

Robert sighed and backed out of the room without another word.

“Sarah…” Hoggle started, but she cut him off. She didn’t need to hear it from him too.

“I think I just want to be alone for a while.” 

She didn’t look up, but she could feel Hoggle’s eyes on her. “If that’s what ya need.”

Once he had vanished, she threw herself down on her mattress and cried.

The more gloomy and depressed Sarah became, the less she called on her friends and the more alone she felt. Her grades started dropping, she and her stepmother started fighting again. One night, Sarah came to, standing outside in the rain. She didn’t have any recollection of how she’d gotten out there, but explaining that to her stepmother only seemed to make things worse. Needless to say, her parents were worried. 

Everything came to a head one day when Sarah came home from school and found Irene in her room, filling a box with her stuff.

"What are you doing?!" Sarah cried, looking at the huge box in the middle of her bedroom floor.

"Just a little spring cleaning." answered Irene cheerfully. "I thought I'd help you out by getting rid of some of the stuff you never use. We're going to have a yard sale."

"You have no idea what I want to keep!" Sarah exclaimed angrily.

"Why bother keeping things that you never use?" Irene wondered, reaching out and picking something else up, her back to Sarah, so the dark haired girl couldn't see what it was. After a moment of looking at it, she tossed it carelessly over her shoulder into the box.

Sarah realized what it was as it hit the side of the box and a flash of blue confirmed her suspicions. It was the Goblin King statue that her mother had given her. Sarah went ballistic.

"Get out of my room! GET OUT!" she screamed.

"What has come over you, Sarah?" Irene demanded.

"Get the hell out!" Sarah kicked over the cardboard box and everything spilled out. "I hate you! Get out NOW!"

Irene's eyes, wide with shock and hurt were the last Sarah saw of her before she vanished out of the room, pulling the door shut behind her.

She sat on the floor, in the middle of the mess for what seemed like hours, clutching the statue to her chest and sobbing. When she had finally calmed down, she crept out of her bedroom and down the stairs to get a drink of water. She made it all the way to the kitchen door before she heard her father and stepmother through the door, talking about her. She crept closer, trying to hear and, at the same time, not be heard herself.

"I just don't know what to do." Irene was saying. "This has been going on for months and I'm worried."

"I know." her father said quietly. "I am too."

"Then what do you think, should we take her to Dr. Ako?" probed Irene.

Sarah heard him sigh and imagined him running a hand over his hair like he always did when he was stressed. "I suppose that's the only thing we can do."

She didn’t want to hear anymore, so she tiptoed back upstairs. They thought she was crazy, did they? That was fine. She could prove to their doctors that she wasn't.

It didn’t take long for Irene to arrange an appointment with a psychiatrist she knew. Sarah wanted to argue, but she knew it wouldn’t do any good. The day of the appointment, she sat at her vanity, listlessly brushing her long, glossy hair.

"Sarah Michelle Williams! Hurry up or we'll be late for the appointment!" her stepmother's voice floated up the stairs.

"Because I totally agreed to doing this." Sarah muttered.

"Honey?" her dad's voice now, directly outside her bedroom door. "Are you okay?" Sarah slammed her brush down on the vanity and scowled at her reflection.

"Oh, sure, Dad!" she snapped sarcastically. "I mean, what nearly-sixteen year-old isn't okay with being carted off to a psychiatrist completely against her will?!" She heard her dad mumble something incoherent in reply and shuffle away from the door. Sarah shrugged and picked up her brush to pull her hair back into a ponytail.

"Sarah." her father's voice interrupted her musings. "Get down here this instant!"

"I'm coming!" Sarah yelled back, putting as much hostility as she could muster into her voice. She looked up at her mirror to check her hair one last time and jerked like an electric current was coursing through her body. Just behind her reflection was a man with dark, intense eyes and wispy blonde hair. Sarah screamed and threw her brush at the mirror. The glass shattered and she was still screaming. The pounding footsteps on the stairs only vaguely registered in her mind before the bedroom door opened.

"Sarah! My God what's wrong?" her father's concerned face floated into her line of sight. "Stop screaming!" He grabbed her shoulders and shook her. “Sarah, stop!”

Her mouth clamped shut; she hadn't realized that she was still screaming.

"What happened?" Irene was behind her father, surveying the destroyed mirror and the panicked teenager with a horrified look on her face.

Sarah's heart was pounding in her ears and she found she couldn't speak. After a couple gulps of breath, she was only able to get one word out before she fainted.  
  
"Goblin."


	2. Chapter 2

If Sarah hadn’t already thought her stepmother hated her, she was beginning to believe it now. It had only been about fifteen minutes since she had hyperventilated and passed out, and Irene was already insisting that they get to the psych appointment.

“I called Dr. Ako, and she said that, with the circumstances, she can see us about half an hour later than we originally scheduled.” She said, “We need to get on the road.”

“Irene, my daughter just collapsed, I don’t know if a long car ride and an interview with a stranger is going to help anything. Maybe we should just wait and reschedule.”

Sarah was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling while they argued. She wondered if they knew she was awake yet. Not that she was going to tell them--if she could avoid the psychiatrist, all the better.

She was trying not to dwell too much on what she had seen in the mirror. The glass had been swept up and the vanity looked bare, with only a wooden frame attached to a table. At least there were no duel-colored eyes peering out at her anymore. Sarah shuddered. What on Earth had he been doing in her mirror?

“Robert, do you have any idea how many strings I had to pull to get this appointment? Her office is filled up for the next six months. Besides, we’ve already got a sitter for Toby. We’re going.” Irene’s voice was right outside the door now. Robert didn’t say anything--of course not, and before Sarah could even sit up, Irene opened the door and strode in like she owned the place.

“Sarah, you’re awake.” she said, sitting down on the edge of the bed. “How’re you feeling?”

Sarah shrugged. 

“Well, we’ve got to get to that appointment…” Irene said delicately.

“Yeah, whatever.” Sarah grumbled and her stepmother stood up. 

“Be in the car in five minutes.” 

Sarah spent the next four minutes staring at the ceiling and silently wishing that none of this was happening to her before she slid off her bed and trudged down to the waiting car. The drive was quiet and unpleasant, none of the car’s three passengers willing to be the one to break the silence. Sarah kept her eyes down and made sure not to look at any of the rearview mirrors.

When they finally got to the facility, a receptionist led them straight past the waiting room and into the doctor’s office. A woman who had to be Dr. Ako was seated behind the desk. She rose when they entered and came to greet them, shaking hands with Sarah’s parents and then turning to her. She was a small woman, less than five feet tall, with a severe black bob and dark olive skin. Her eyes, though, were a shocking ice blue and they pierce straight through to Sarah’s soul as the doctor studied her.

“Hello, Sarah, I’m Dr. Ako. It’s nice to finally meet you,” she extended her hand but Sarah just stared at her until she finally lowered it. “Have a seat.”

Sarah plopped down in one of the two wingback chairs across from the doctor’s desk. Irene took the other and Robert remained standing, hovering awkwardly behind Irene’s chair.

Dr. Ako resumed her seat behind the desk, steepling her fingers as she studied Sarah. “I’ve spoken to your parents a bit about your situation, Sarah, but I’d like to hear it from you. Why do you think you’re here today?”

“I don’t really know,” Sarah lied, gritting her teeth, “Probably because I can’t live up to  _ Irene’s _ ridiculous expectations of me.”

“Oh that’s hardly--” Irene interjected, but Dr. Ako raised a delicate hand to quiet her.

“I want to hear Sarah’s view of the story first, if you don’t mind. You’ll get a chance to talk shortly.” 

The support bolstered Sarah, and she sat up straighter in her chair. “I’ve been kind of exhausted lately, but it’s not a big deal. They think I’m nuts or something.”

The doctor nodded in understanding. “What about the incident this morning?” she prompted.

That one threw Sarah. “The incident?”

“Your parents say that you smashed a mirror because you thought you saw, ah, a goblin in the reflection. Is that true?” 

Sarah frowned. “Well, uh…”

Dr. Ako nodded. “I see. Okay, Sarah, thank you for your time. If you wouldn’t mind, go ahead and sit out in the hallway for me while I speak with your parents. Shut the door on your way out.”

Sarah bit the inside of her cheek, resisting the urge to say something sarcastic, and stomped out of the office. She pulled the door shut behind her, but didn’t let it latch, so she could overhear the conversation. There was a full-length mirror on the opposite wall, and Sarah averted her eyes, dropping into the uncomfortable plastic chair next to the door, one leg tucked up underneath her.

"Well Sarah seems like a fairly well-adjusted young lady,” she heard Dr. Ako say through the cracked door. "Perhaps she’s is just under some stress at the moment. Does she have trouble with bullies at school?"

"Stress? She smashed her bedroom mirror just this morning because she thought she saw a  _ goblin _ in it!" her stepmother exclaimed.

"Irene…" Sarah's father attempted to interject, but his wife was far from finished. "Robert, you've heard her talking to herself up there at all hours of the night just as many times as I have." Irene retorted. "She needs to at least be on medication." Sarah rolled her eyes. Leave it to Irene to be as melodramatic as possible.

"Have you considered having her stay here at our group home? Just temporarily?" the doctor's quiet question brought a thick silence on the room and Sarah sat up straighter, straining to hear what was being said. Surely her father would never agree to this...

"The…group home?" Robert choked out.

"Well, we need to do  _ something _ ." Irene said. "She's going to become a danger to Toby if she keeps this up."

Sarah stiffened, her cheeks flushing with anger. She would  _ never _ hurt Toby! How could Irene be so idiotic?

"You're telling me that the only choices I have are medication or a group home?" asked Robert, his voice thick with irritation.

"Maybe she just needs some time away from you," continued Dr. Ako. "Since I haven't witnessed any of these--"

"Panic attacks?" suggested Irene. Sarah tried to imagine the look on her stepmother face.

"--there's not much more that I can do." the doctor concluded.

"I don't like either of these options," protested Sarah's father.

"Well, the only other option would be…" Ako was still speaking, but Sarah was no longer eavesdropping. She had caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror on the opposite wall and, draped casually on the back of her chair was none other than the Goblin King himself.

Sarah bit back a cry and slowly turned to look. There was no one there. She reached up with her hand and waved it through the air behind her, wondering if he had the power to turn invisible. Nothing.

Nonetheless, he continued to observe her with those unusual mismatched blue eyes, a smirk playing on his thin lips. He was leaning his hip against the back of the chair, arm draped artfully over her shoulder. Sarah scowled at the image, but he seemed unaffected.

"Go away," she snapped. The reflection made no reply. "You have no power over me." He continued to sneer at her, without speaking. It was infuriating. She was at the lowest point in her life and he dared to show up and mock her? 

"Leave me alone!" she cried, "you have no power over me! You have…no…power over…me." The Goblin King vanished and Sarah sank to the floor, cradling her head in her hands. She wasn't going crazy, she didn't imagine it. Sarah chanted the words over and over in her mind, like a mantra that would be true if she only said it enough.

A gentle touch on her shoulder informed her that she was no longer alone. Now, surely, they all thought she was insane. Damn. She had just blown her one chance at getting them to believe she was fine. Why did his presence (whether real or imagined) elicited such a response from her? Why was it so easy for him to get under her skin?

"Sarah," the calm voice of Dr. Ako made her look up. The psychiatrist was watching her with sympathy and worry in her eyes. Sarah immediately stood up and straightened her shirt.

Dr. Ako put a comforting hand on her arm. "Sarah, we think it would be a good idea if you stayed here for a while."

Sarah flinched away from her as if she had been burned. "But I'm not crazy!" She argued, "this isn’t fai--" She stopped mid-sentence.  _ I wonder what your basis for comparison is?  _ The words echoed in her mind and she suddenly knew, no matter what she did or said, they were going to keep her here. Life was unfair.  
  
And there was nothing she could do about it.


	3. Chapter 3

Sarah was shown to her room by a pair of orderlies who didn’t speak as they led her down the fluorescent-lit hallways. She had been so angry when her father left, she hadn’t even said goodbye. Already, she was regretting it, a lonely ache starting up in the pit of her stomach. This place didn’t look like a group home. It looked like the kind of place you put someone when you wanted to forget about them. A real world oubliette. How quickly would her father forget her? How quickly would Toby?

The room they brought her to was completely whitewashed. It had four walls, all of which were white. The single metal door was also painted white. The ceiling and floor were white and the only two pieces of furniture in the room were a colorless dresser in the corner and a bed pushed up against the wall, plain white sheets tucked neatly around the mattress. There wasn’t even a window. There were no mirrors, either. After the two incidents Sarah had had with mirrors, it wasn’t surprising that all of the mirrors had been removed from her new home before she was brought in. It was the only relief she had in this dreary place.

Sarah hated it. As the door closed and the lock clicked behind her, she felt despair clouding her chest. This place was a prison! How could her father leave her here like this? How could Irene? Did they really not care about her at all?

With a sad sigh, Sarah plopped down on the bed and started picking at the tattered grey quilt, ignoring the camera pointing at her from the corner of the room. The silence was piercing. She  _ had  _ to get out of here. If she wasn't crazy already, (which, as much as she hated to admit it, was a distinct possibility) she would be before long.

"Hoggle?" she whispered, keeping her eyes focused nonchalantly on the blanket. "I-I need you."

There was no answer. But of course not, she had no mirror to call him with. Sarah had never been so utterly alone. Even after her mother had left, even after her father had built himself a shiny new family that she felt excluded from, Sarah had never felt more abandoned. Finally, the reality of her situation sank in and she curled up on the bed, with her face buried in the pillow and began to cry.

~ * ~

Far away, in the Underground, the Goblin King was handling another human. Sitting on his throne, his legs draped over the arm, Jareth disinterestedly twisted a crystal between his gloved fingers, turning it this way and that. He completely ignored the teenaged boy standing before him. 

"Uh…Your-Your Majesty?" the boy stammered. Slowly the Goblin King raised his mismatched eyes to the boy. Unblinkingly, he stared at the mortal, waiting for him to continue. The boy looked young, still had spots, and there were horrible metal contraptions on his teeth. He shuffled in place, trying and failing to look confident.

_ Probably about eighteen winters,  _ mused Jareth.  _ Much too old to be wishing a sibling away for some ridiculous, minor annoyance.  _ But that was always the way, wasn’t it? Anger could be a powerful motivator, and what was said could not be unsaid. The Goblin King had seen more than his fair share of human folly. It had stopped surprising him centuries ago.

"Please," the boy pled. "I made it through your maze, just let me have my sister back!" His voice had risen, desperate, as he watched the King's face and saw no pity there.

"The labyrinth took you fourteen hours," corrected Jareth in a disinterested tone. "You were allotted thirteen. You failed." He returned his gaze to the crystal in his hands. Back and forth he tossed it, from left to right, the light glinting off, but the picture within always just out of reach.

The teen must have had some small measure of courage, because he persisted. "What am I supposed to tell my parents when they ask where Sara is?"

The crystal slipped from the King’s fingers and shattered on the stone floor. His eyes flashed and narrowed and he rose, his great height imposing. The boy cowered, as he should. As they all did.  _ Almost all. _

"You make the foolish mistake of believing that I care." He answered, his voice suddenly low and dangerous.

"Bu, but--" the boy protested.

Before he could say another word, the Goblin King waved his hand and the teen vanished.

Alone in his Throne Room, Jareth allowed a sigh to escape his lips as he glared down at the broken mess at his feet.  _ Sarah _ . How long had it been since she had defeated him? A day? A millenia? In her world, it must have been months. The time since was irrelevant. The Fair Folk have long memories, and the King’s was longer still. It would take more than time to banish her long, dark hair and cold green eyes from his mind.

As if in answer to his thoughts, her voice echoed through his head, distant and hollow as if coming from very far away, a message not meant for his ears. " _Hoggle?_ _I-I need you."_

Startled, Jareth jerked his head around, his eyes darting about. It vaguely occurred to him how fortunate it was that none of his subjects were here to witness such behavior. But why was he hearing her? It had been some time since she had called her friends and he often wondered why. The temptation to fly to the Aboveground and see was quite alluring, but Jareth had sworn that he would never seek her out again, no matter how much he wished it. His was not to wish, only to grant.  
  
Instead, he threw himself back into his chair, pressing his long fingertips to his temples and trying very hard not to think.


	4. Chapter 4

By the end of the first week, Sarah had the home’s routine committed to memory.

Sometime around 8 am (an estimate, on her part, because there was no clock in her room) the lights in her room came on automatically and a gravelly voice informed her, via intercom, that her breakfast was on its way. Shortly thereafter, a smiling nurse in salmon-colored scrubs brought her a plastic tray holding a carton of milk and some disgusting goop that they tried to pass off as food. Sarah picked at it for a while before the nurse returned and bore the barely-touched plate away.

About an hour later, the voice returned to tell her that it was time for her to shower. A large, burly orderly led her down the dim hallway to the showers. He set a timer for eight minutes and warned her that if she didn't come out within ten, he would have to come in and check on her. He put the timer on the sink and left her to rush through a lukewarm shower with generic shampoo and a paper-thin piece of soap.

Back in her white room, Sarah sat alone in silence until somewhere around noon (where were the clocks in this place?) when she was taken to a small cafeteria for a meal that rivaled her first in repulsiveness. Although she sat alone, Sarah was thankful for the time around the other patients. Most of the people in the lunchroom were there visiting family or suffering from something less serious, like generalized anxiety disorder, so they avoided her. She heard whispers that she had been diagnosed as paranoid schizophrenic--and the only one allowed to eat in the public lunchroom. But she ignored their stares and pretended she was at school. She had never talked to people at school either. Nonetheless, even involuntary company made her feel more human. It was these brief sojourns out of her room that really made it clear that this wasn’t a group home at all. 

It was an institution.

She had a hourly one-on-one session with Dr. Ako after lunch everyday, but it was mostly the doctor talking and Sarah refusing to engage. Therapy was the last time she was let out of her room, excepting for bathroom breaks, for the rest of the day. An appropriate number of hours later, dinner was brought to her--still unappetizing, but by a different, less cheery nurse. Sarah would move the food around on her plate, but only eat a few bites before giving up on the meal.

Finally, somewhere around 11pm, her lights unceremoniously flipped off, leaving Sarah in darkness, except for the dim glow of light from the hallway in the tiny square window on the door.

This was the worst part of her day. Alone in the shadowy room, Sarah wished for sleep, but it would never come. Despite the ever growing purple bruise-like circles under her eyes, Sarah was afraid to sleep. If she slept, she would dream and if she dreamt,  _ he _ would almost certainly be there. It was a frightening idea, that he could invade her subconscious. Sarah had been down that road before and she didn't like it.

So she spent her nights perched on the edge of her bed, staring out the window or counting the ceiling tiles. It was more like she  _ couldn't _ sleep, rather than she opted not to. It seemed unlikely that her doctor would appreciate the distinction. The blinking red light up by the ceiling, in the corner reminded her that she was being watched, but Sarah hardly cared. They already thought she was crazy, what did it matter if she added insomnia to the bill?

Sarah never felt more alone that during those hours. She desperately missed the late-night conversations she had had with Hoggle--talks she had taken for granted. Apparently she had learned nothing from the Labyrinth! Nonetheless, sometimes, she still tried to call him. He never came; he couldn't hear her without a mirror.

After four days of this routine and four sleepless nights, Sarah was sure she was losing her mind. How could someone be expected to live like this and keep their sanity? 

On the fifth morning of her stay, instead of being carted off directly back to her room after her rushed shower, Sarah was informed that she had visitors. The visitors turned out to be her father and Toby (Irene had suddenly become rather busy with work) who were planning to spend the entire day with her. Never before had Sarah been so happy to see them and she took Toby from her father's arms and hugged him fiercely as soon as she got the chance.

"Oh, it's so good to see you!" she exclaimed.

"My Sawa!" announced Toby, snuggling close to his big sister. Sarah and her father both laughed, a sound that Sarah hadn't made in what seemed like ages. They fell silent and Sarah decided to present her case immediately.

"Dad, can you take me home now?" she asked quietly.

Robert didn't answer, but the look in his eyes told her that the doctors had filled him in on her late-night vigils and uncooperative therapy sessions. There was no way she could convince him to get her away from this hell-hole. Tears swam in her eyes, but she blinked them away and smiled unconvincingly.

"Never mind. Let's just enjoy the day." If she was going to have to stay here longer, she didn't want their visit cut short because her father felt awkward.

They spent the entire day together, eating lunch and dinner out in the courtyard. They worked on a puzzle while Toby sat on the ground between Sarah’s feet, ripping clumps of grass out of the earth with his fat baby fingers. Robert told her stories of Toby’s new favorite word (“no”) and Sarah was just beginning to feel somewhat sane again. She was afraid she would lose that when they left, but eventually it started to grow dark, and she caught Robert checking his watch. They had to go, he told her, it was a long drive back and Toby was going to be exhausted tomorrow.

"I love you, honey," her dad told her, giving her a swift kiss on the forehead. "I promise, we will come back next weekend." He hesitated. "Be good, Sarah."

"I will," she answered half-heartedly. "See you next week." She turned and started back into the building, but her father stopped her.

"Oh, wait! I brought you something." He produced her sketchbook, along with some pencils and a plastic sharpener. "For when you can't sleep," he explained.

"Thanks, Dad." Sarah took it, pleased. She didn't have the heart to tell him that she had no control over the lights in her room. Besides, she wanted it. She flipped through a few pages, landing on a rather good drawing she had done recently. It was a white barn owl-- _ him _ . Sarah stared at it as if in a trance for long moment.

"Jare." Sarah's head jerked up. Toby was pointing at her sketch, beaming in pride. "Jare." he repeated with certainty, waiting for Sarah's approval.

"What is he talking about, Sarah?" her father asked. Sarah swallowed, her throat suddenly very dry. Her hands started to shake and she clenched the notebook tight to disguise it.

"I have no idea," she lied. Robert looked at her pale face and alarmed eyes, unconvinced, but he didn't press the issue.

"Well, we have to get going. Take care, Sarah." She nodded, trying to rearrange her expression to wipe the worry from his eyes.

"Bye bye, Sawa." Toby waved his small hand and grinned at her. She returned the gesture and watched them walk to the parking lot before an orderly came and led her back to her room.

As soon as the door clicked shut behind her, Sarah tossed the sketchbook onto the bed and started pacing. How had Toby known? Had the Goblin King come back? Was he trying to take Toby again while she wasn’t there to defend him? How could he? She had defeated him, damn it! He wasn't supposed to have any power over her, or her brother. There were rules!  
  
The lights shut off and Sarah stopped pacing and flung herself onto the bed. She opened the sketchbook to the picture of the owl and stared at it for a long time. If he hurt Toby, one way or another, she would kill him!


	5. Chapter 5

The Goblin King sat in the highest window of his castle, overlooking the Goblin City and, beyond that, the Labyrinth. From his perch, he could see the orange sun sinking towards the distant horizon, as well as all of the winding maze between. Down below, in the city, he watched clumsy goblins going about their daily tasks with mind-numbing regularity. Even that which he couldn't see physically, he could use his powers to watch and regulate. His crystals showed him almost everything.

But there was one thing his crystals did not, would not show him...

Jareth withdrew a crystal from the folds of his cloak and rolled it back and forth, over the top of his hand. He remembered as if only moments had passed rather than months.  _ If you turn it this way, it will show you your dreams... _

"Sarah." he breathed, bringing the crystal close to his face. The clear surface clouded over instantly with thick white smoke. Jareth cursed and tossed it to the floor in a fit of pique. Instead of breaking, it bounced lightly and rolled away, coming to a stop at the feet of the dwarf who had just appeared in the doorway of the throne room.

"What do you want Higgles?" Jareth grumbled irritably.

“Hoggle.”

"Yes, whatever. Why are you here?"

Hoggle looked rather confused. He shuffled his feet in clear discomfort, dipping his head.  "Uh...ya sent fer me, yer majesty?"

"Ah yes." Jareth recalled, studying the dwarf with more interest.

Until now, he had never revealed to any of his subjects the intensity of his connection to Sarah. Her trip to the Labyrinth had changed her completely, given her a magic of her own. It was dangerous to let a human win, but he had underestimated her. She was Fae-touched now, and somehow, the link between Champion and Goblin King made it so that he could hear her anytime she called for any creature from his kingdom. Jareth didn't particularly want to have constant reminders of Sarah’s existence and continued interaction with his subjects, and he most certainly did not want to discuss it with the dwarf. He was counting on the insipid little creature’s slow mind to miss the finer details. 

"Hedgewart." he began.

"Hoggle, yer majesty."

Jareth waved a gloved hand impatiently. "Do you keep a regular contact with, ah,  _ certain individuals _ in the Aboveground?"

Hoggle seemed to understand. "I ain't been up there in a while," he admitted.

"Why is that?" the Goblin King asked sharply. The dwarf’s bushy eyebrows came together as he frowned, perplexed either by the question or his King’s mercurial behavior.

"I can't travel there by meself," Hoggle explained, "I have ta be called."

"I know that, you fool!" Jareth snapped. "But why have you been ignoring her calls?"

Hoggle looked troubled. "Sarah ain't called me..."

Jareth leapt to his feet, temper flaring. None had dared speak her name in his presence since her triumph. "Are you contradicting me, dwarf?" he demanded.

"No, no, all I meant was I ain't heard her!"

"Well, I have." Jareth told him, throwing caution to the winds. It appeared that the quickest way to get the information he needed was through honesty. He had never put much stock in honesty. 

Hoggle was stunned. "She called  _ you _ ?"

"No, you imbecile! I can hear her calling  _ you _ ! It is incredibly distracting!" he paced, his speech becoming more agitated. He stopped abruptly and turned to the tiny creature. "I want you to go Aboveground and check in on her. Make sure she is safe."

"But I can't-"

"I realize your magic is too weak to take you across the Barrier." Jareth cut him off, his voice cold. "I, however, do not have such limitations. I will send you." He paused, "but she must know nothing of my interference, do you understand?"

“But--”

“Have I made myself clear, Hagar?” Jareth repeated, narrowing his eyes. Hoggle nodded weakly.

"Very well." Jareth settled back onto his throne, observing the dwarf over steepled fingers. "You may go and see your friend, but report back to me immediately upon your return." He unlinked his fingers and another crystal materialized in his hand. The King tossed it lightly at Hoggle, who flinched away like the predictable coward that he was. It burst like a bubble, inches from the dwarf's face. 

Hoggle vanished and Jareth sat, staring at the place where he had stood, his mind whirling.

It was foolish of him to get so involved with a mortal girl. Hoggle would return and confirm Sarah was safe and happier with her human friends, and that would be the end of it. Jareth was fully aware that he needed to leave well enough alone. This fixation would do him nothing but harm, he knew, and Sarah had been perfectly clear about her feelings on the matter. Immortality was enduring, and the Goblin King was not about to pine away after a human girl. He would just have to move on, but Fae memories are as long as their lifespans, and there is a reason that most unite only once.

  
For once a Fae falls in love, he is in love...forever.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posted this chapter from mobile, so forgive any formatting errors.

Sarah fidgeted nervously in her seat, an overstuffed paisley-print armchair across the desk from her psychiatrist. Dr. Ako watched her intently over the top of her square-framed red reading glasses. Ducking her head, Sarah let her long hair fall over her shoulder trying to put some sort of barrier between them. It didn't do anything to dissuade the doctor. She cleared her throat and began her speech. Sarah was sure she had it down pat by now. God, she hated her individual therapy sessions. When her parents had first brought her here, it had been billed as a group home, but she barely interacted with the other patients. Sarah hadn’t had a single group session since she'd been abandoned here, but she had been stuck sitting across from Dr. Ako once a day, avoiding her unswerving blue-eyed gaze.

"Now dear, how are you?" The psychiatrist smiled, showing all of her teeth. The expression was utterly devoid of warmth and Sarah shuddered involuntarily.

She didn't bother to answer the question. It was the same routine, one hour, once a day. As long as she didn't talk, the woman usually let her leave early. Even though Sarah hated being confined in her room, anything was better than being trapped with this needling doctor.

"We are going to try something new today, Sarah, how would you like that?" Dr. Ako eyed her in a way she had seen Irene look at the wives of her father's coworkers; polite disapproval. Sarah was mildly surprised that the psychiatrist intended to deviate from her usual custom, but she was determined not to show it.

"Whatever."

"Okay, Sarah, here's what we are going to do," she continued, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose as she spoke. "We are going to find out where your happy place is."

"Excuse me?" despite her intentions to keep her voice neutral, Sarah felt the disbelief seeping through.

"This is a place in your imagination" the psychiatrist plowed ahead, as if she hadn't heard, "where you are absolutely happy. In this place, you feel secure, protected, loved, and warm. In other words,  _ happy _ . Close your eyes, if you please."

Sarah rolled her eyes, but Dr. Ako continued to stare at her expectantly, so she decided to humor her and closed her  eyes. Cooperation was the best way to escape.

"Remember the criteria and try to think of a place like this. Please tell me about it, Sarah." Dr. Ako’s voice took on an unfamiliar melodic quality and Sarah relaxed into her chair, despite herself.

As much as she hated to think of it, an image started to piece together in her mind. Soft music tinkling through the air, sparkling ball gowns of gauzy white material, the feeling of floating…

"Usually, someone's happy place is dependent on the people who are there. Can you tell me about the people in this place?"

Sarah shook her head, but the images kept flowing. A dance partner, tall and lean, in a glittering blue jacket spun her in a graceful arc across the dark marble floors. His strong arm encircled her waist and his other hand was wrapped around her own, their fingers entwined. His blonde hair shimmered in the low light…

"Does your dance partner have a name, Sarah?"

Sarah's eyes snapped open. Had she been speaking aloud? Why was she even thinking about that? She felt like she'd been doused with a bucket of ice water, realizing she'd told the doctor about that particular memory. She was gonna be sick.

"Sarah?" the doctor peered at her, her voice full of false concern. "Are you alright?"

"I want to go now." She stood abruptly, shoving the chair back several inches.

"But we still have fifteen minutes…"

Sarah ignored her and strode out the door. The orderly that was supposed to take her back to her room wasn't there, so she dropped into the chair outside the office and held her head between her hands. She knew Dr. Ako wouldn't bother following her.

Why had she done that? She hadn't even meant to come up with any happy place, let alone that ballroom. It hadn't even been a  _ good _ memory--just a lie to keep her from her goal. And she had told her therapist about  _ him _ . What was wrong with her?!

Sarah heard movement and lifted her head. The hallway was empty. She had been sure she had heard something. But Sarah caught sight of that stupid mirror across from her again and she forgot the noise.

Leaning against her chair, his head propped up on his arm, stood the Goblin King, dressed in his ballroom finery and blue jacket. Sarah groaned ran her hand through her hair.

"Go away!" she hissed, taking care to keep her voice low. "I don't want you here."

He made no reply, but his smirk became more pronounced. Sarah scowled.

"Fine,” she whispered. "Two can play at that game."

She turned her chair to face the wall, like an angry child, just short of sticking her fingers in her ears and singing. Fifteen minutes later, when her orderly returned, she was still sitting that way; ramrod straight, her arms crossed over her chest, staring resolutely at the wall. Sarah saw one of the man's eyebrows go up, but he said nothing. She followed him back to her room without complaint and sat on the bed as he closed and locked the door. And Sarah found herself glad, for once, that her room had no mirrors.

*

Hoggle flew through Barrier at high speed. It looked like a long, colored tunnel, shooting past as he rocketed towards the Aboveground. His stomach lurched. If this went on much longer, he was gonna be sick. He hated traveling this way. Only love for Sarah would have him doing it. But he had been moving a long time, longer than it usually took to arrive in Sarah's bedroom. Hoggle was starting to get worried when, finally, it stopped. He stumbled a bit on the landing before getting the chance to look around.

  
His first and obvious deduction was that this was not Sarah's home. He had landed in a long, white hallway, washed in sickly fluorescent light from overhead. There was a mirror on the wall behind him, and paintings of ugly pastel flowers along the other walls. His second guess was that Jareth had sent him to the wrong place. But that couldn't be right; he was one of the most powerful Fae in the Underground, and the only one in his domain with the power to travel Above without being summoned. Surely he knew where Sarah was. Maybe she was just visiting this place. Whatever the case, it gave Hoggle the creeps, so he hurried down the hallway in search of his friend.


	7. Chapter 7

Sarah's flight from the psychiatrist's office lost her lunchroom privileges for the week, but it hardly bothered her. She was still angry with herself for speaking of _him_. The more she thought about it, the stranger it seemed. Why would she tell _anyone_ , much less a psychiatrist, anything about the Underground, or the Goblin King in particular? She tried to remember why she had answered at all, but her memory of the session was vague and indistinct, even though it had happened just a few hours before.

When dinnertime rolled around, the nurse brought her tray with some sort of overcooked meat, a mushy pile of steamed carrots, and a miraculously unbruised peach. She ignored the food, except to knock the peach onto the floor in a flash of irritation. It reminded her of that stupid ballroom fantasy again, which she was doing everything in her power to forget.

She dwelt instead on the issue of Toby. Her baby brother, as young as he was, obviously recognized the white barn owl as the Goblin King, but how? As far as Sarah could tell, there were three possibilities.

Option one: Toby remembered the thirteen hours he had spent in the Goblin City, in that bastard’s company. It seemed unlikely. After all, how could a baby have such a good memory?

Alright then, option two. The Goblin King had returned, now that Toby was unprotected and was trying to steal him away again. Sarah clenched her teeth at the thought. He would have her to deal with if this were the case.

The third option was rather silly, but Sarah knew she needed to consider all the different possibilities.

When she had first returned home from the labyrinth, Sarah had insisted on keeping Toby close to her at all times. For the first few weeks, she had brought him to sleep in her room. She knew she talked in her sleep; he father constantly teased her about it. Sarah also knew that her dreams during that time had been mainly of _him_ and his labyrinth. So it was possible that Toby had picked up the name then.

Sarah felt heat in her cheeks and she knew she was blushing. Annoyed, she turned her thoughts back to her brother. It wasn't even like that, anyway.

As far as she could tell, there were no other possibilities. No fourth option. The idea that he had returned seemed the most likely and Sarah felt her face flush again, this time in anger. Even if she were on her best behavior, cooperating during her sessions with Dr. Ako, eating all of her meals and sleeping at night, it might not be enough for them to let her leave. But, at the moment, it was the best plan she had for protecting her little brother, so it would have to do.

With an exasperated sigh, Sarah collapsed onto the bed and pulled her pillow over her face.  


* 

Hoggle wished he knew where he was. It would make everything so much easier. When he had first started visiting Sarah, Jareth had lectured him on the magical laws about being seen by humans. The rules were, obviously, different in the Underground than the Aboveground.

Inside the labyrinth, or anywhere in the Underground, magical creature could be seen by humans. Simple enough. Rules for the Aboveground were more complicated. Most children could see magical creatures, as could people who had traveled to the Underground before; the Fae-touched. Adults who were especially perceptive or still had good imaginations could sometimes see them too. Other than that, magical creatures were invisible. _Nonetheless_ , the Goblin King had cautioned, _it would be in your best interest to remain unseen_. The threat was implicit.

At the time, Hoggle had marveled at the conversation, which seemed to have come up out of nowhere. He was used to the King's passing fancies, and listened carefully for his own self-preservation, if nothing else. Now that he knew Jareth had been aware of the visits all along, it made more sense. The real mystery was why the Goblin King hadn't prevented him from seeing Sarah in the first place. She had defeated him, and Jareth was the sorest of losers. It was a miracle that he hadn’t had each person who helped her flung into the Bog, really.

Hoggle was just beginning to wonder if he was in some sort of daycare, about to cause an uproar, when heard a cry behind him.

"What the hell was that?!"

Hoggle trotted around the corner and hid himself behind the first unlocked door he could find. It seemed to be a supply closet and he peered out the keyhole, ignoring the mop poking him in the back. He could see two men in off-white scrubs striding down the hallway towards his hiding place.

"Where did it go?" the man who had seen him wondered.

"There was nothing there, Steve," a second voice said impatiently.

"I saw it, Paul!" argued Steve. "It-it was like a troll, or a gnome or something!"

Hoggle scowled into the darkness. Couldn't a person tell a dwarf when they saw one?

"You were imagining things." Paul decided. Then he laughed. "Hey, maybe working in an asylum is making you nuts!" Steve joined in hesitantly, and they went on their way.

Hoggle waited until their footsteps died away and then cautiously opened the door and slipped out. Why was Sarah in an asylum? Wasn't that where they locked up crazy people? Even though he knew he had to be more careful now, Hoggle wanted, more than ever before to find his friend. Jareth's worry that something was wrong suddenly didn't seem so far off base. The dwarf shuffled down the hallway, concern growing with each moment that passed.

*

When the older nurse, the less cheerful one, brought Sarah her dinner tray, she unexpectedly changed her routine by actually starting a conversation. Sarah had honestly been starting to wonder if she could talk at all.

"Miss Williams? Have you seen anything odd, inside or out of your room today?"

Sarah looked up from the peas she was smashing with the back of her plastic spork, surprised. The first thought that came to her mind was Jareth perched on the back of her chair, outside the therapist's office, but she said: "No, why?"

The nurse sighed and shrugged. "They told me to ask all the patients."

Sarah was mildly interested. "Why?" she repeated.

"Apparently, there have been some patients, and even a few orderlies and nurses who have reported seeing a little gnome-thing running around here." She rolled her eyes, as if to show Sarah what little stock she put in such stories.

"A-a gnome thing?" Sarah dropped her spork, completely engrossed in the story.

"Yeah, you know. 'Bout three feet tall. Squashed looking little fellow. Nose shaped like a potato. I wouldn’t worry, though. Probably just a rodent of some kind."

Sarah did know. She wasn't describing any gnome Sarah had ever seen, but it did sound like a perfect portrayal of her dwarf friend. After the nurse left, she tried to quash the little seed of hope that was slowly growing in her chest. Surely Hoggle hadn't come back, after all this time?

If he had, all she could do was wait. Sarah hated waiting.

  
She put the pillow back over her face.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay, folks. The year's just been flying by me! I promise to try and keep more regular updates.

"These…ah, _sightings_ are causing an uproar amongst the patients, you say?" inquired the doctor, scrutinizing a young nurse over her red-rimmed glasses. He squirmed under her gaze, wiping his sweaty palms repeatedly on his scrub-pants. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and nodded.

"Yes, ma'am. We had to clear the cafeteria when about half of the patients saw the--the monster." He flushed, as if embarrassed for using the word.

"Group psychotic episode," she murmured. "Very well. I have been going over patient records and I believe it would be best to sedate these patients." she waved a manicured hand over a thin stack of manila folders and he picked it up, flipping through the folders. "That top one is first priority."

"Why is that, doctor?" asked the nurse curiously.

"All of the patients in that stack are schizophrenic, George." she replied. "As you know, schizophrenics are prone to seeing things that aren't there. They are also more likely to self-inflict pain."

George nodded eagerly. She gave him a tolerant, closed-lip smile. "The patient whose records are in the top folder is a paranoid schizophrenic. Do you know what that means, George?"

"It means the patient not only has hallucinations, he or she believes that these hallucinations are out to get him or her." he answered hurriedly.

"Correct in the essentials." she nodded kindly. "And that particular girl has hallucinations specifically of monsters. So you'll understand why we don't want her to know of this. She may harm herself."

"I'll be sure to give her top priority."

"See that you do." Dr. Ako returned in a steely voice. As he scurried from the room, she leaned back in her chair, steepling her fingers, deep in thought.  
  
*

"Oh my god! Monster!" the now-familiar cry pierced the air.

"Aw, fer Pete's sake!" grumbled Hoggle, slipping into another hiding place. If you were from the Underground, you might mistake these “crazies” for the sane ones. He had discovered that well over half of them could see him. He had also learned that there was pretty much only one response when humans saw a magical being: panic.

"Mr. James, what is it?" an orderly gripped the old man's upper arm, turning him away from Hoggle.

"There's a troll under the water fountain."

Hoggle took this moment to escape. He darted out as quickly as someone of his stature could manage and hurried into the next, blessedly empty corridor. He stood on tiptoes to squint at the names on the doors. As luck would have it, Sarah had taught him enough English during his visits to her that he would recognize her name if he saw it. The name on the placard was not hers. He followed the doors to the corner; none were Sarah. His heart sank in disappointment, but he marched resolutely towards the next hallway.

He was just turning the corner when there was another scream.

"Oh my God! There's a leprechaun!"

Hoogle allowed himself a derisive snort as he hid himself behind the first unlocked door he could find. He turned around and saw a line of sinks and stalls. One of the stall doors swung open and a balding man stepped out holding an very familiar-looking blonde toddler. The man acted as if Hoggle didn't exist, sat the child down, and went to wash his hands. The boy, however, looked directly at him and said in a high, clear voice: "Hog!"

*

Sarah looked up as her door opened, hoping against hope that it was Hoggle. Instead, there stood a pair orderlies, eyeing her warily.

"What?" she snapped, in no mood to be diplomatic.

Neither one answered. It was then that she noticed one of them was holding a rather large syringe. She swallowed hard, eyes fixed on the needle. The two men moved forward without bothering to close the door behind them. A wild thought of escaping flashed through Sarah's mind, but she discarded it before it had even fully formed. They were bigger than she was and there were two of them. Didn't mean she had to go quietly, though. Sarah climbed off the bed on the opposite side, putting it between her and the orderlies.

Just then, the bathroom door across the hall swung opened and out toddled Toby, chasing after what looked awfully like…

"Hoggle!" she yelped. He turned and looked at her as Toby caught up to him and threw his fat baby arms around him.

"Hog!" he announced contentedly. Sarah's father came out of the bathroom next, looking confused.

"Toby, what are you doing?" he demanded, scooping the little boy up. As soon as he was free, Hoggle dashed between the legs of the bewildered orderlies and into Sarah's room.

That’s when Robert noticed his daughter. "Sarah!" he said delightedly. "We decided to surprise you and come visit early this week."

The two orderlies exchanged a glance. "Uh, sir?" said the younger of the two. "We actually have a situation on our hands. Dr. Ako wants all the high-risk patients sedated until the problem is taken care of."

Robert's face fell. "Oh. I see…"

"However,” said the orderly continued quickly, “the medication wears off after a few hours, so if you'd like to come back then--or even wait in the cafeteria, that would be fine."

"Oh! That would work."

"Dad-" Sarah tried to speak, but he cut her off.

"They'll bring you down to the cafeteria when you wake up, okay?" he smiled cheerfully and Toby waved. Sarah bit her tongue, fighting back tears at how little concern her father was showing.

"Thank you, sir." said the orderly, shutting the door. Sarah exchanged a panicked look with Hoggle and took another step back towards the wall.

"Now, Miss Williams, could you please just relax for me?"

"No way," she snarled.

"I promise this won't hurt."

"I don't care." She retorted, "I don't want to be knocked out."

"Miss…" the younger orderly tried to grab her arm, but she jerked free.

"Don't touch me!"

But the moment's distraction was all it took. Faster than she expected, the second orderly was behind her, pinning her arms to her sides.

"Let. Go. Of. Me." she growled, stamping on his foot with each word. Hoggle hovered anxiously at the foot of the bed, at a loss for what to do.

The younger orderly approached with an apprehensive look on his face. She kicked out at him as hard as she could and he jumped back out of range.

"Just jab her already!" bellowed the bigger man holding her. He gave her a violent shake and the room spun. "She's stronger than she looks."

Sarah felt a sharp stab on her shoulder. Within moments, the room started to take on a hazy quality. The orderly's grip on her slackened, but still held her up as he led her to the bed.

She collapsed against the pillow, falling into the first real sleep she had had in a long time. As she lost consciousness, Sarah could swear that she heard a familiar lullaby playing her to sleep.


	9. Chapter 9

Sarah felt weightless, like a soap bubble caught on a breeze. She heard the first few notes of a familiar refrain and her eyelids fluttered. Her dreams were fragmented and confused. She felt strangely relaxed, despite her pounding heart and the rushing noise in her ears. Flashes of people and places crossed her subconscious in a colorful jumble. She saw her mother on a stage, surrounded by adoring fans, her father giving her a worried look; Hoggle, Didymus, Toby, her stuffed bear, Lancelot. There was no sense to it. Alarm bells went off in the back of her mind, telling her that she'd better wake up now, but they were distant and muted. Her body resisted. She was far too comfortable.

Someone was singing. A strong, intense voice singing her name. She recognized it and her mouth formed around his own name, prepared to reply…

A knotty hand gripped her shoulder painfully and shook her. "Sarah! Don't!"

Her eyes flew open and she sat up in one movement. Disappointment settled in her stomach like a lead brick. She was still in the hospital. Then she remembered Hoggle and her excitement flooded back.

"Oh, Hoggle!" she cried, leaping off the bed and crushing him into a hug.

"Yeah, yeah." he said gruffly, but she knew he was pleased. He pulled away from her sooner than she would have liked and gave her a stern glare.

"Ya know ya talk in yer sleep, Sarah?" he inquired.

Sarah winced. "So I've been told…"

"Well, ya need to figure out a way around that." he frowned. "If ya had said that rat's name, he might'a showed up right here! Sorry I had to wake ya." he added apologetically.

Sarah's face reddened in anger and embarrassment. "It's fine, Hoggle,” she lied. "I needed to wake up anyway."

Hoggle looked relieved and Sarah thought it was probably a good time for a change of subject.

"How did you manage to find me?" she asked. "I haven't got a mirror to call you."

"I, uh, fell outta one in the hallway." he stammered. The dwarf’s evasiveness was not lost on Sarah, but she decided to let it go, for the moment.

"I've missed you,” she confessed, "I was starting to wonder if I'd made the whole thing up." She shook her head scornfully. "I doubt I'm that creative."

"Why're ya here, Sarah?" Hoggle said softly.

She laughed, but it was a bitter laugh that he did not recognize. It made goosebumps rise on his arms. This Sarah was far more cynical than the one he knew.

"That's what they do to people who see Goblin Kings in their mirrors, I suppose."

Hoggle' eyes widened. Jareth had behaved as if he hadn't seen Sarah since she defeated him, and seemed sincere when he had ordered the dwarf to mention nothing of his involvement. But, then, the Goblin King wasn't exactly known for his honesty. Hoggle scowled. He half hoped that Jareth had been lying to him and that he  _ was _ watching her, because he didn't want to face what it might mean if he hadn't been.

"Hoggle?" Sarah waved her hand in front of his face. "Are you listening to me?"

"Huh?" Hoggle blinked back to reality to find her peering anxiously at him.

"You aren't sick, are you?" her face was concerned and she was the Sarah he knew again, w orried about him when she was the one locked up.

"Nah, wasn't paying attention. Sorry," he grunted. "What were ya sayin'?"

"I'm worried about Toby." she repeated, her forehead furrowed in anxiety. "He recognized Ja--"

The door opened and the orderlies who had sedated her came into the room, shutting the door behind them.

"Talking to yourself again, Miss Williams?" mocked the big one. "You're nuttier than squirrel shit."

"God, Sebastian, be nice, would you?" snapped the younger one. "She's locked up in here 24/7, man. You really wanna make fun of her?"

"If you two are done talking about me like I'm not here," Sarah said, annoyed, "I'd like to go see my family now."

"Sure thing, cuckoo-bird." The one called Sebastian winked and tried to take her arm. Sarah jerked away with a venomous look.

"I'm not paralyzed, you don't need to help me walk." He didn't try to take her arm again, but stayed close as the younger orderly opened the door again. Sarah allowed herself a brief glance back at Hoggle and a jerk of the head, conveying that he should come with her.

They walked down the hall in silence, an orderly on either side of Sarah, ready to catch her if she tried to bolt, she imagined. Finally, they got the cafeteria and they left her alone with Hoggle.

"I can't talk to you here." She whispered before opening the door. "But I thought anything would be better than waiting for me in that damn room."  Hoggle nodded in agreement and she pushed open the door. The cafeteria was empty, except for her father and Toby sitting at the farthest table from the door. Both looked up at the sound of her footsteps.

"Sarah!" exclaimed Toby jubilantly. "Hog!"

Sarah saw her father give the boy a puzzled look and she exchanged a troubled glance with the dwarf. She sat down at the table across from them, inconspicuously pulling the other chair out for Hoggle.

"Sarah," he smiled, looking comforted by her presence. "How are you?"

She shrugged. "Alive."

He chuckled as if it had been a joke. Toby beamed at her and slid down from his chair to stumble over to her and crawl into her lap Sarah picked him up with a smile and he waved at Hoggle.

"Hi Hog."

Her father's forehead creased. "Who is this 'Hog' he keeps talking about?" he wondered. "Do you know?"

"Sorry, Dad, she lied. "No clue."

"Must be an imaginary friend." he mused. "Irene said-"

"Irene said what?" she interrupted sharply. 

Robert looked surprised. "Just that she thought she'd heard him talking to himself in the middle of the night. Keeps mentioning someone called 'Wick' at home. She assumed it must be--Sarah? Are you alright?"

Sarah turned her panicked eyes down to stare at the tabletop, trying to control her breathing. "I'm fine, Dad." she said, her voice slightly higher than usual as she traced a pattern in the wood grain with her index finger.

Toby knew Hoggle. He also seemed to recognize  _ him _ . Wick sounded like a  _ goblin _ name. Was it possible that he had come back, or sent goblins for her precious baby brother? After all, he had all sorts of powers and clearly had no trouble getting to the Aboveground. If he discovered she wasn't home, he might--

"Sarah, are you even listening to what I'm saying?" Her father's demanding tone broke through her thoughts and she looked up at him. His expression was a mixture of annoyance and worry. "What’s the matter?"

"Nothing," she repeated, "I was just thinking."

"What about? Honestly, honey, you haven't been yourself," he chided. 

Sarah shrugged, sullen. "What do you want me to be like?" 

"I just want you to be happy," he cried,  exasperation finally winning out. "And healthy. I want to be able to take you home."

Sarah raised an eyebrow. "Nobody's exactly stopping you, Dad.”

"You know I can't bring you home right now, Sarah.” Robert’s voice was placating, trying to pacify her. Sarah ground her teeth. “Your therapist says you’re refusing to engage in your sessions.”

"So much for confidentiality," she said, letting sarcasm drip from her voice. "I can't believe you're doing her dirty work."

One look at her father's face confirmed what her suspicions. The surprise midweek visit had been Dr. Ako's idea. 

"And," Sarah snapped, "for the record, I  _ am _ perfectly healthy, mentally and otherwise." She shoved out from the table and stood up. Toby whined in protest, his fat fist clutching at her smock. She started to bounce him automatically, making a shushing noise until he stopped squirming. Robert watched her without saying anything and she felt another wave of anger at the thought that her father might not trust her with her own brother.

"I think visiting time is over," she said, struggling to keep her voice level. Sarah handed Toby back to Robert, wishing more than anything that she could keep him with her. "Have a nice week."

She walked out of the cafeteria as quickly as she could without running, Hoggle trotting along in her wake. The orderlies were waiting in the corridor. She imagined they'd heard everything and were going to rush to report to Dr. Ako as soon as they could. In retrospect, flying off the handle was probably not the number one way to be discharged sooner. By the time they got back to her room, Sarah's gloomy mood had grown worse. The orderlies locked her and Hoggle in and she flopped back on the bed, feeling tears prick at the corners of her eyes.

Hoggle took her hand. "We're gonna get ya outta here somehow." He said, halting in his attempt to comfort her.

Sarah smiled weakly, doubtful, but unwilling to tell him so. 

"Hoggle?" she murmured, pushing up on her elbows to look at him.

"Yeah?"

"How did you get here?"

"Through the--that mirror in--in the hallway." he said, obviously flustered. Sarah glared down at him, pulling her hand away.

"Tell me the whole story, Hoggle, and it better be the truth. I don't think I can stand anymore lies."

Hoggle shifted uncomfortably under Sarah's piercing gaze. He suddenly understood how someone could call her emerald eyes cruel. It felt as if she was scraping the truth from his very soul.

"I can't tell ya," he mumbled. "I ain't supposed to."

"Why not?" She sat up completely, cocking her head in curiosity. Hoggle was unexpectedly struck by how fae-like the movement was. He swallowed, hard.

"I-I just can't." If only she would just drop it. He knew Sarah was far too stubborn for that.

"Will you be in trouble?" He recognized the dangerous glint in her eye. It reminded him of the every other time he'd tried to argue with someone so obstinate. It had never gone well for him. He shook his head slightly to clear it.

"You won't?" Sarah sounded genuinely surprised. He realized she had taken his movement as an answer.

"I will." He grumbled, knowing she wouldn't rest until she got it out of him. " _ He'll _ be furious."

"So what?" Sarah jutted her chin out defiantly, a gesture that was all her own. "Who cares what  _ he _ thinks?"

"Sarah," he sighed, "you forget that I'm a coward. He scares me."

"Well, he doesn't scare me! Should I just call him here and ask him myself?" She tilted her head consideringly and Hoggle repressed a shudder. He was sure she would do it, if pushed far enough.

"No!" he yelped. "I'll tell ya already. You damn, willful fool.”

"Tell me everything."

Hoggle understood that it was more command than suggestion and sighed in defeat. "He sent me."

Sarah looked confused. "Who?"

" _ He _ did. The Goblin King."

Sarah's confused expression froze in place. She looked like she was carved from stone "Oh he did, did he?" she said stiffly. "And why, exactly, would he do that?"

"Uh…well…" Hoggle stammered.

"If this has anything to do with Toby…" she growled, jumping to her feet.

"It ain't got nothing to do with Toby!" argued Hoggle, uncertain why he was defending someone he hated.

"Why then?" She hissed. The hair on the back of the dwarf's neck prickled. He'd never seen Sarah this angry before. He took an involuntary step back.

"He heard ya." Hoggle blurted.

"What?"

"You called me, and he heard ya."

"I--, but...what?" she blinked. "But I was calling  _ you _ ."

"I guess he can hear when ya do that."

"How?"

Hoggle shrugged. Sarah didn't understand. If Jareth had always been able to hear her calling Hoggle, why hadn’t he prevented the dwarf from visiting her in the first place? And why would he actually go so far as to send Hoggle when the dwarf couldn't do it himself and would have never known she needed him? Stalking her through the mirrors was one thing--something she expected--but  _ compassion _ ? She started to pace the room, anxiety making it hard for her to stand still.

"Sarah?" Hoggle's voice was as concerned as the gruff little fellow could manage.

"Yes?" she said evenly, without stopping or looking at him. He opened his mouth, decided against it, and closed his mouth. Sarah continued pacing, back and forth in measured steps.

They both remained silent for a moment. The the idea that Jareth was capable of kindness was seriously battering her ego. She almost felt sympathy for him, and then she remembered. 

"If that's so," she snarled, skidding to a halt. "Why does Toby recognize him? Why is my baby brother seeing goblins in his bedroom?"

To that, of course, Hoggle had no answer.

"I want to talk to him." she said rashly. "Now."

"Sarah-"

"You don't understand." she snapped. "I almost lost my brother once. I  _ will not _ let it happen again."

"Sarah--" Hoggle tried to protest, but it was too late.

"Jareth!"

"Sarah, no!"

"Damn it, Jareth!"

"Stop!" Hoggle moaned.

"JARETH! I KNOW THAT YOU CAN HEAR ME, WHEREVER YOU ARE, SO SHOW YOURSELF ALREADY!"

Suddenly, the door burst open. Sarah turned, half expecting to see the handsome leather-clad blonde. But it was the two orderlies from before, brought by the unwitting performed Sarah had been putting on for the camera monitor.

"God, not you again!" cried Sebastian. "Do you ever stop with the crazy?"

"If you so much as touch me…" Sarah backed away, letting the sentence hang.

"Oh shut up."

"Sebastian…" the other orderly reproached.

"C’mon, Daniel, she's a nut job. Don't talk to me about freakin' morals. Just help me."

They came at her from opposite directions, backing her into the corner.

"Miss Williams, you already know it doesn't hurt." Daniel said soothingly. He clearly didn't want to fight her. "Can't you just let us do our job?"

"When hell freezes over."

"C'mere!" Sebastian reached for her and Sarah did the first thing that crossed her mind: she screamed. Loudly.

"Oh, for God's sake! Shut UP!" Sebastian's fingers clamped painfully over her mouth and she reacted instinctively again, biting down with all her strength. "Ow!" He jerked his hand back, stunned. It was bleeding. "You  _ bitch _ !" He backhanded her, hard, and she staggered, catching herself against the wall.

" _ Sebastian _ !" cried the dismayed Daniel.

"Shut the hell up and jab her," the big orderly growled, grabbing Sarah's upper arms and jerking her roughly towards the bed. She tried to struggle, but her head was still throbbing from the blow. Sebastian shoved her down on the mattress harder than strictly necessary, gripping her arms to kept her from getting away again.

Daniel's eyebrows rose disapprovingly, but he appeared to be too scared to do anything about it. Sarah felt the needle prick her arm and, for the second time in her life, felt the sensation of sinking beneath black waters into complete and blissful unconsciousness.


End file.
